Seven road, bridge projects planned

Within the next year, Maryland will start seven transportation projects in Washington County at a cost of $25 million, Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari said Thursday.

The two largest projects are bridges.

Maryland has earmarked $9.4 million to replace the Shepherdstown Pike (Md. 34) bridge over the Potomac River, Porcari said.

Work is scheduled to begin in the spring and take two years. Maryland and West Virginia are splitting the cost.

At about the same time, the state will widen and rehabilitate the two Interstate 70 bridges over Tonoloway Creek on the fringe of Hancock at a cost of $9.4 million. That work is expected to be complete in late 2004.

Porcari came to Hagerstown on Thursday to present the state's annual list of transportation priorities for Washington County.

-- Realigning and repaving Mapleville Road (Md. 66) between San Mar Road and Little Beaver Creek in San Mar, starting this fall, $924,000.

-- Adding turn lanes along National Pike (Alt. U.S. 40) between Md. 67 (Rohrersville Road) and the Frederick County line outside Boonsboro, starting next spring, $2 million.

The road will be closed for about a month that summer and traffic will be detoured onto Interstate 70.

-- Street reconstruction along Main Street in Hancock, which is under way and should be completed in October at a cost of $2 million.

-- Streetscape improvements along U.S. 40 between Walnut Street and Potomac Street in Hagerstown that started this spring and should be completed by late this fall at a cost of $1.9 million.

-- Repairs to bridges, which began last fall and will be finished next summer. Those bridges are on U.S. 340 and U.S. 522, which both span the Potomac River, and on Interstate 70. Total cost is $4.1 million.